"Speak," Yellow demanded. The screen barely finished materializing by the time she'd given the order, catching the caller unawares. The monitor took up nearly a whole wall of the room, casting light along the protruding engine casings lining rhe interior. Because of this, massive shadows were cast, creating patches of darkness in random areas.

"Uh, yes, My Diamond," the gem on the other end responded, her posture rigid. It exuded uncharasteric nervousness from this Era-1 gem, and Yellow picked up on it immediately. Her eyes narrowed in agitation, a building urge to call her out on her behavior. She did not need another one of her Gems behaving like antsy Rubies after encountering Earth...

Nevertheless, she was managing to keep her composure, however thinly.

"Get. On with it," Yellow urged testily, deciding not to yet challenge the gem on her behavior. The Peridot flinched, but seemed to get her act together. Good.

"I've captured the Peridot-"

"Do you have anything new to report?" Yellow tested, her distinctive irises boring into Peridot's. The smaller gem swallowed.

"Uh..."

"What is the Amethyst and Obsidian's current status?" Yellow cut in before the Peridot could muster a reply, moreso to not suffer through the technician's stammering.

"Destabilized and captured."

Yellow blinked, her mind blanking momentarily. Did she hear that correctly? She pinched the bridge of her nose, a habit she'd picked up, and refocused on the pilot.

"...Excuse me?" Yellow asked slowly. Peridot began to sweat, and played it off by clearing her throat. To still her hands, she folded them together.

"That's actually what I wanted to report to you about," the pilot continued. "They and myself were caught off guard by their...unorthodox tactics." Peridot tapped her fingers together. "They're constantly fusing, no matter who the constituent gems are," she reported. At this, Yellow Diamond's lip curled in undisguised distaste. "The Era-2 Peridot...she's especially dangerous."

Yellow leaned back in her chair, not having broken eye contact with her subordinate, exhaling tiredly. The Era-2 Peridot again. She seemed to be an annoyingly reoccuring subject lately. "What about her?" she inquired impatiently.

"She..." Peridot hesitated momentarily, trying to decide on how she would broach the subject. "Her demeanor is...strange. Obdidian and Amethyst were outmaneuvered by what should have been a ragtag group, not to mention that the Peridot I captured seems to be so sure of her moral standing that..." Peridot sighed. "She has me questioning the actual premise of our..." she trailed off, noticing the expression on her Diamond's face. She appeared to be impassive, but something about her posture was tense, violent. "Of our mission..."

"Choose your next words carefully,"

Peridot locked her hands together. "I humbly suggest we cut our losses. Anyone who visits this planet; It does something to their mind," Peridot reflected, her mind wandering to the crazed Era-2 Peridot.

Yellow was silent, tapping her fingers of her right hand on the armrest, her eyes closed. Her head rested in her left hand. Thinking. Yellow opened her eyes, half lidded. "Fine," Yellow relented. She loathed the idea of recalling troops, but her contingency plan was already in place.

It was both an unexpected and unwelcome surprise to find out that both Obsidian and Amethyst were out of comission. But that annoying Era-2 Peridot must have had a wealth of information, at least in regards to the Cluster. If there was one thing Yellow could tolerate in place of a physical victory, it was information.

Perhaps the Rose Quartz would finally clean up the mess that seemed to be getting bigger all the time. If not...well she'd have to think on it. She was exhausting both her back up plans and her own patience.

Thunk.

Before the telltale sound of an automatic door sliding closed, ahe belatedly realized light had been pouring into Peridot's room from the hallway. The Gem in question notixed something amiss too. She had spun around quickly, squinting at the walls and the connecting hallway. Nothing to be seen except splotches of light splayed onto tge surface of pipielines, engine casings, and electrical wiring.

It was silent for three, four seconds and then forgotten about. Probably nothing.

"My Diamond," Peridot began, surprising her with her initiative. "I will be arriving shortly with the prisoner."

"Good. See to it that you do."

--

It was decided then. She would need to steal one of the Hand Ships. She cursed her luck, nonetheless. She had no idea how to even pilot one of the massive crafts. Nevermind the fact that it would draw unwanted attention. She was creating suspicion simply by being here. She continued walking along the shadows of the ships, planning to at least steal one farthest from the edge of the tarmac nearest to the barracks.

Rose examined one ship in particular which had it's entrance hatch closed. The hatch blended seamlessly with the surrounding metal. One wouldn't even know it was there unless looking for it. Rose glanced around herself inconspicuously for any spying eyes. She breathed in and out, mainly for the comfort of the action than any actual necessity. Her hand glided over the glossy finish, and she stopped when a muted click sounded. Rose stepped back, allowing the entryway to descend. She stepped onto the ramp, her booted feet producing an echoing thunk on the floor. She quickly looked back again before continuing onwards.

There were Gems milling around everywhere outside in the tarmac, all of them knowing what they were doing and walking everywhere with purpose. She was well aware that she looked lost...Because she was. These Gems still at the least had their Diamond! What was she left with? A relic from a bygone era, belonging to a Diamond that wasn't even recognized in the new Authority symbol.

The line of thought was making her head hurt.

"Hey, you!"

Rose started, her shoulders jumping upward. She froze, forcing herself to look back slowly.

It was the Jasper from earlier. A light red streak ran vertically down her right eye, evoking the image of a scar. She was tall, but not quite as large as Rose. She stepped forward, her yelllow accented boots echoing across the plated floor.

"Is there a problem..?" Rose asked, turning to face the other Quartz soldier.

"Yes," Jasper replied, standing tall. "We recieved a tip about an unregistered gem attempting to steal a ship."

The accusation was clear from her body language. She looked Rose up and down as if analyzing her very strengths and weaknesses.

Rose frowned. She knew this was a had idea. Why did Yellow Diamond send her here? She was so far from Earth, and there was bound to be rumors spreading here the moment she was spotted. The Jasper took another step forward, and Rose retreated a single step. Jasper narrowed her eyes at Rose's behavior.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Rose affirmed glancing behind her. There! She hadn't noticed it before, but the Alternator console was almost directly behind her, framed by huge viewport windows, which were currently tinted dark. She was so close...but this Gem had to suddenly show up...

"I'm just a transferring medic. I don't want any trouble," Rose pleaded, slowly shifting backwards. If she could just reach the alternator...

"Really?" Jasper questioned, sarcasm clear in her voice. "A Quartz with pink hair and insignia suddenly appears on a backwater outpost on a 'transfer' mission?"

Rose sucked her teeth, preparing her Gem.

"I know what you are, Rose Quartz," the other Gem continued, holding one arm out to the side. Her gem, nestled in her right shoulder, suddenly glowed, and a large staff formed with what looked like a giant iron slab fixed to one end. It was a simple but mean looking sledgehammer, the axe head about as big as either of the Quartz's heads.

"We recieved an anonymous tip about you, traitor," Jasper announced, hefting the heavy weapon with just her right arm.

"You're mistaken," Rose answered sincerely. She was at a loss for words though. Who had reported her to authorities?

"I thought you were just a legend, a myth created by the Era 1 rebels," the orange skinned Gem continued, ignoring Rose's plea. "I'm going to do what that backwater planet's Facet 9 Jasper couldn't!"

Without warning, Jasper charged at the other Quartz, her sledgehammer swinging in a large arc. The speed of it nearly caught Rose off guard, but she reacted in time to summon her weapon, a medieval looking vambrace covering her right arm from fingers to shoulder. She swung upwards, her armored arm colliding with the hammer, producing a piercing ringing that caused the both of them to wince.

--

A/N: This chapter is a little shorter than usual. My apologies. I was dealing with Writer's block among other things.